An eye for an eye: Showdown
by Beautiful Snow Queen
Summary: It's the final showdown between the Cold Case Squad and Cliff. Now that someone has abducted Lilly, he can finally get Ellie and Chris back. But the Cold Squad is not about to give up so easily. They'll get their detective back no matter the cost.
1. Chapter 1

_Previous__ly on Cold Case..._

_Lisa Hazelton's arm was caught in some roots as she was under a grey Chevy Malibu; her right leg was caught on the other side of the car. The pressure on her leg felt like it was completely cut off from circulation- which didn't help with the fact that it was freezing outside._

_She shivered for a moment, struggling to get her arm free of the roots. She froze when she heard something coming toward her. A moment later, she saw that it was a white wolf. Her breath caught in her throat when it stopped in fron of the car and started to sniff her._

_"We'll find her, Lil," he said reassuringly. "You of all people should know that she's a survivor."_

_"Boss?" she asked when he hung up._

_"Yeah," Scotty said. "And you'll never guess who he found with the search dogs."_

_"He found Sapphire?"_

_Lisa could hear the scraping of claws against the metal outside, and it only took a second to realize that the wolf was digging her out of her little prison, so that she could finish kicking the metal away. After a few more dozen kicks, and a lunge, she was able to crawl out of the overturned car._

_Using a tree to support herself as she put all her weight on her good leg, Lisa looked around. She had no idea where she was, but perhaps she could leave a trail for others to follow if they ever found out where she was. Thankfully she had brought- and her abductor had left- her crocheting supplies with her. She started limping heavily forward, leaving dragging tracks behind._

_"What's that?" he asked, pointing to it._

_Lilly followed his finger, and walked to the tree. It was a pair of pink earbuds with an iPod Nano hanging from it. "This is Lisa's iPod," she said quietly. "Lisa doesn't go anywhere without it."_

_"So why is it here?" Scotty asked._

_Lily tried to turn the power on, but it was clear that it was dead. "Battery's dead- she wouldn't have any use for it. Maybe she's leaving us a trail."_

_"Scotty... she's soaked."_

_"Could it be from the snow?" Scotty asked._

_"It hasn't been snowing that long," Lilly said taking off her coat, and instantly regretting it when she felt the cold air on her thick sweater. She placed it around Lisa's shivering body._

_"Oh, no," Scotty said. "She must've fallen into the river. Look at her leg." He pointed to her right leg that was bent slightly._

_Lilly sighed, it was going to be awhile before help arrived. "What do we do now?" she asked Scotty._

_"I don't know," Scotty said. "We'll figure something out, though."_

_"Well, she's lucky she's not dead after that kind of exposure to the cold. Had you not warmed her up a bit when you did, it might've been too late to save her," the doctor said. "She'll be in crutches for a bit, though. Her knee was popped, ankle sprained, and her shin was fractured."_

_"Ouch," Kat said._

_"Other than that, she'll be fine."_

_"Can we go see her?" Scotty asked._

_"Sure. But make it brief; she needs her rest."_

_Lilly went in first. Lisa tried shifted onto her side when she heard someone coming into her room; but her leg was in a sling, so she just turned her head. "Now I know not to believe you're asleep when I come in to check on you," Lilly said._

_"Thought you were one of the doctors," Lisa replied._

_Lilly smiled. "The others are outside."_

_"Bring 'em in."_

_They stepped in a moment later. Wishing her to get well, and Nick brought her a Blizzard from DQ._

_Scotty took her home about an hour later. "I'll pick you up tomorrow," Scotty said._

_Lilly smiled. "Thanks, Scotty. For everything."_

_Scotty smiled in return and brushed her hair back from her face. "What are partners for?"_

_"I'll see you in the morning." Lilly stepped into the apartment, locking the door behind her. She made sure her cats had food, and then started upstairs to her bedroom. Problem was, she never made it to the staircase. Someone jumped her from behind, and placed a cloth over her mouth. It didn't take long for her to collapse._

_Early the next morning, Scotty arrived. After honking the horn a couple of times and calling her cell, Scotty went inside. After a quick search, it was clear that there was a struggle. There was a note on her refrigerator door._

_I have your detective. Bring me my daughter within the next 48 hours or she dies._

_The note confirmed Scotty's worst fear: Lilly had been abducted._

Scotty barged into PPD, causing everyone in his team to look up at him. "What's goin' on, Valens?"

"Lil's been abducted," he said hurriedly, heading to Stillman's office.

"What?" Kat asked. "When?"

"Last night, sometime after I dropped her off."

Jeffries picked up the phone to call someone, while John came out of his office. "What's going on, Scotty?"

"Lil's been kidnapped," Scotty said, handing Stillman the note.

"Who's daughter is this person talking about?" John asked after he read the note. Scotty shrugged.

"I don't know, could it be Lisa?"

"I doubt it; Lisa is technically Lilly's daughter now. Is there someone else that we took a child from?"

Scotty shrugged. "I don't think so, but we need to ask around; I'll head to the hospital to make sure Lisa's still there. It could be the same kidnapper." Stillman nodded.

"Take Jeffries with you, I don't want anyone alone after what just happened."


	2. Chapter 2

Scotty rushed into the hospital and into Lisa's room. She looked up from a book she was reading, slightly startled. "Scotty? What are you doing here?"

"Has anyone been here to see you?" Scotty asked urgently.

Lisa shrugged and shook her head. "Just the doctors- they said I can leave as soon as Lilly picks me up- other than that, no. Why? Is something wrong?"

"Lilly's been kidnapped," Scotty replied.

"What? When?"

"Last night."

Lisa looked away, muttering something incoherently. "What?" Scotty asked.

"I was a decoy," Lisa explained. Jeffries came in a moment later.

"You need to slow down, Scotty," he said. "I'm getting too old for this."

"Hi, Jeffries," Lisa said.

"Hi, Lisa, how's that leg?"

"A pain; but, I'll live. Could you sign me out while I get my crutches?" It was then that Scotty noticed that she already had her clothes on. "Did it this morning, Scotty," Lisa said, as if she was reading his thoughts. "Like I said, I could leave as soon as Lilly came to pick me up- obviously that's not happenin' though." She leaned over to the side of the bed, and prepped herself to get off. She had never used crutches before, but she loved swinging around between desks- which was pretty much the same thing. Lisa leaned forward, a little unsteady at first, and swung her leg forward, taking care to make sure the leg didn't touch the ground.

"Are you ready?" Scotty asked.

"Do you need to ask?" Lisa replied, with a teasing smile on her lips. Scotty rolled his eyes at her, then turned to Jeffries, who had just walked in from signing her out.

"We have a problem," he said. "The nurse doesn't want to discharge her without her guardian's signature."

"And considering my guardian's missing," Lisa said, " that would mean I would be stuck here for awhile. No thanks, we'll take the old fashioned way out."

"Which is what?" Jeffries asked.

" Luckily my room is on the first floor," Lisa said with a smirk. "We're goin' out the window, boys."

Scotty turned to Jeffries. "If we get into trouble because of this, I'm blamin' you."

Jeffries laughed. "If we get into trouble? We'll just tell the boss it was her idea."

When they were outside the hospital, Scotty brought the car around, and Lisa sat in the front. "So, how do we know for certain that she's been kidnapped?"

"There was a note left on the refrigerator door," Scotty explained, handing her the note. Lisa took it from him, looking over the details. "Crud," she said. "He meant what he said."

"Who did?" Scotty asked.

"Cliff, he's the one who put me under that car. I don't remember exactly what happened, I think he slipped me something, but I do recall him mentioning that when I was found, Lilly would be missing. I was used as a decoy- since I was in the hospital, no one could stand in his way from getting to Lilly."

"And you didn't bother telling us this?"

"Hello, I was on the brink of a coma when you guys found me; kinda was thinking about survival, not my abductor."

"Fighting about this won't get us closer to Lilly," Jeffries said. "If Cliff took Lilly, then what daughter could he be talking about?"

"Ellie," Lisa said, looking at Scotty.

"Chris' daughter?" Jeffries asked.

"Yeah. Lilly kicked Cliff's butt when she found out what had happened to her sister."

"When did this happen?" Jeffries asked.

"Remember that thing that happened with Chris back in May?"

"Yeah..."

"That's when," Scotty shot Lisa a dangerous look, which she ignored. "And Lil's going to kill us when she finds out that you know."

Jeffries laughed. "It was bound to get out sooner or later. " Then he turned serious. "Where's Chris right now?"

"I think Lil said she was at the Cooper's."

"She is," Lisa confirmed, then she made a face. I'm just gonna _love _Celeste's doting on me with a bum leg."

The two men laughed, and Scotty started off for the cooper's.

S

When they reached the Cooper's house, Lisa was the one who got out of the car first. She had a little difficulty getting up the steps, but she was determined to get up there without anyone's help. When she finally reached the top, she knocked on the door. Christina answered it. "Lisa?" she asked, then looked down and was shocked to see her right leg in a pink cast. "What happened?"

"Small mix up," Lisa replied casually. "Mind if we come in?"

"Of course," Christina replied, moving a little to allow the wounded girl room to come in. Jeffries came in next, nodding in acknowledgement, then Scotty came in. She offered him a small smile, which he returned; but, they both knew that the feelings that they had for each other six years ago were gone. Scotty's feelings were for the other Rush. "What's going on, Scotty?" She asked worriedly. "What happened to Lisa?"

Scotty sighed; he hated doing this as it was, but to tell his partner's family- that was torture. "Where's your dad?"

"Upstairs. Why? Where's Lilly?" It was then that she noticed that her older sister wasn't with them. Worry came creeping all over her face.

"Get him, we need to talk." Christina nodded. Celeste and Finn appeared a moment later with Ellie. O_h, boy, _Scotty thought.

"Lisa," Celeste said, walking over to her. "What happened?"

"Uh... I'll explain in a minute- in fact it's probably best if Scotty and Wil tell you," she said, turning to head into the living room. Paul Cooper came down a moment later.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Mr. Cooper," Scotty said slowly, "it's probably best if we spoke with the entire family."

Paul nodded and followed Scotty into the living room. Finn carried Ellie in there and sat next to his "niece" who was actually around his age. His other niece he placed on Lisa's lap; Celeste brought out a footstool for Lisa to prop her leg on. "Thanks," she said. Christina sat on Lisa's left; Paul took a chair, and Celeste sat on his arm while Scotty took a different chair across from them; Wil stood.

"What's going on, Detective Valens?" Paul asked. "It's rare that I see you without my daughter."

"Actually," Scotty replied, "that's what this is about. Lilly's been abducted."

There was a moment of tense silence, then Christina spoke. "By who?"

"The same person who gave me this bum leg," Lisa replied. "Cliff. He abducted me first, and used me as a decoy; then, when Lilly was alone in her house, he took that opportunity and abducted her next."

"But why?" Celeste asked.

Lisa and the detectives turned to Christina. "He wants Ellie," Christina said quietly. "When he kidnapped me and took me to Jersey, Lilly went after us; gave him a good beating too... or so I hear- I was passed out at the time. Anyway, I don't know what he would've done to Ellie if she hadn't come. I don't know why he wants her."

"He may also want you, Chris," Scotty said gently. "But all he said was to bring Ellie to him within the next 48 hours or he's going to kill Lil."

"But why not come here himself?" Finn asked.

"Well, there's a lot of you, for one thing," Lisa said. "Lilly only lives with me, and sometimes I go to a sleepover with one of my friends- which would leave her completely alone. Revenge also fits in- how would you feel if your girlfriends sister just knocked you out of the league with a few simple punches?" Scotty knew that was not what Lilly did, but he kept quiet for their sake. He was the one who had to keep Lilly from shooting Cliff in the first place. He looked at Finn who smirked.

"Not very good. Embarassed more than likely."

Lisa nodded. "Exactly."

"But how are we supposed to get Lilly back?" Paul asked.

"We need to wait for further instructions," Scotty explained. "I'm betting he'll use Lilly to contact us using Lil."

Christina nodded. "Cliff's not dumb- but he can do stupid things at times."

The detectives finished their visit and headed out to the car. "Now what do we do?" Lisa asked, limping down the staircase, bracing her hand on the railing at the bottom step and swinging down.

"We'll talk to Boss and the others," Jeffries said. "Then we'll figure out a plan. In the meantime, we need to figure out who you're staying with."

Lisa scoffed. "Please, I'm sixteen. I can take care of myself. Besides, with these crutches, I have two new weapons." She had a smug grin on her face when she said that. Scotty couldn't help but smile and feel pity at the person who felt like it was a good idea to mess with Lisa Hazelton.


	3. Chapter 3

When Jeffries, Lisa, and Scotty reached PPD, they knew something was wrong. Stillman looked up just as the two detectives finished putting their guns away. "When did they discharge you from the hospital, Lisa?" he asked as she swung in.

"They didn't," Wil said. "Lisa went out the window when they wouldn't let me take her. Her guardian was the one who had to discharge her."

"So you basically kidnapped her?"

"No," Lisa replied, simply. "They gave me a lift home when I knew I couldn't make it."

"Well, the hospital called us, wanting to report you missing; but, now I guess we can call it off."

"What's wrong, John?" Wil asked, cutting to the chase. There was a grave look on his face.

John sighed. "Lilly called us, from her cell. She sounded like she was being forced to say it, but she said that Christina needed to be at the train station tomorrow at noon. After that, she hung up."

"Alright, so we use Christina as bait?" Scotty asked, his mind bouncing all over the place.

Stillman sighed. "We might have to. Unless trace can find out where she is-"

"But more than likely her phone's been turned off, right?" Lisa asked, still standing on her crutches. Stillman nodded; Lisa sighed and plugged in her earbuds to her iPod.

S

The next morning, Lisa went with Christina to the tracks. She hid behind a pillar- far enough away not to be seen, but close enough to hear and see a little bit of what was going on. She watched as Christina paced the walk way. "Dippers are in position," Lisa said in the radio. "No sign of Rocky or Flower yet."

"Ten-four, Li," Scotty said teasingly. Lisa didn't think it was funny at all, but came up with her own form of retaliation.

"What have I told you about calling me that, Lover boy?"

"Alright you two," Jeffries said. "That's enough."

"He started it," Lisa blamed.

"And I'm finishing it," Jeffries countered.

Lisa growled something unintelligible, then said, "I think I see someone heading toward the Dippers."

"Hold your position," Stillman warned. "This could be a decoy."

A man matching Cliff's description walked over to Christina, stopping a few yards away from her. "I don't like this," Lisa muttered. "Anyone see Lilly?"

"Negative," Scotty replied. "He probably has her hidden somewhere around here, though."

Lisa snorted. "Either that, or maybe he just didn't bring her. Wouldn't surprise me in all honesty."

"I can't hear their conversation," Jeffries said.

"Did you bring her?" Cliff asked.

"I did, but she's in the car," Christina replied.

"Go get her," Cliff ordered.

"Not until I see, Lilly," Christina replied.

"You'll get to see your sister again, once I see my daughter."

"I don't like this," Lisa said. "Does anyone see his car?"

"Negative."

"I've got a bad feeling about this." Cliff suddenly slapped Christina, causing everyone to look her way. "That's it," Lisa said, grabbing a hold of her crutches. I'm aborting the mission. Someone better follow him to his car, because there's no way that I will be able to keep up." Before anyone could reply, Lisa was already out from behind the pillar. "Cliff!"

Cliff looked up, then turned to Christina. "You called the police?"

"They came to me," Christina said timidly. "Please..."

Lisa was about a yard or so away by now. "Cliff! Pick on someone your own size!"

"Get down on the ground, now!" Jeffries called, his gun aimed at Cliff. "Hands in the air!"

Cliff took one glance at them, then took off; Jeffries lost his line of sight, and was forced to lower the weapon. Scotty went after him. Lisa was at the car in five minutes- Lilly was going to kill her, but times were desperate. After a quick seat adjustment, she slammed her foot on the gas.

When she reached Scotty, Cliff had just taken off in another car. She slammed her left foot on the brake, and let Scotty get in. "Are you allowed to be driving this thing?" Scotty asked as Lisa slammed on the gas again- she had to cross her legs to get her left foot on the gas. "Law says I'm allowed to drive with anyone over 21; you are over 21, aren't you?"

"Yeah," Scotty said, gripping the handle just above his seat.

"Then you've got nothing to worry about."

"What about just now, when you were driving without an adult."

"Five minutes, doesn't count- besides, you guys cover for each other all the time; you could do the same for me."

"If Lil finds out, I'm not going to be the one to blame."

"She's not going to find out; is she?" she shot him a brief glare, then slowed down to make a turn.

"Not from me."


	4. Chapter 4

Lisa chased the car half-way through town before Cliff finally slowed. Lisa stopped the car, and Scotty automatically got out. Lisa was slower, thanks to her bum leg. "Hey," she called to Scotty. He stopped to see her struggling to get out. "Mind giving me a hand?" Scotty hesitated, looking the direction Cliff had gone. "Hey! She's still gonna be there by the time we get there; but, we'll get there faster if I can get out of this stinkin' car."

Scotty shook his head at Lisa's remark and held her crutches for her as she got out; then, he dashed after Cliff. Lisa had to watch him run, and swing around on her crutches as fast as she could.

Scotty reached a clearing, but he had lost sight of Cliff earlier. He looked around trying to see if he could catch sight of him. Suddenly, he was tackled by someone one, and the wind got knocked out of him. He quickly realized it was Cliff, and the two men tussled for a bit.

Lisa heard a fight going on up ahead, and she knew that it was Scotty and Cliff; Scotty's anger was probably enough to give him adrenaline, and keep him fueled up for awhile- but eventually one of the two was going to have to stop. Lisa reached the clearing, sneaking up slowly behind Cliff, who was about to deliver a good blow to the head. Instead, Lisa delivered that blow to the back of his skull with one of her crutches. It was lights out for him instantly. "I guess crutches do have their uses," Lisa commented.

Scotty got up and cuffed him to a tree, then he turned to Lisa who was looking at her crutch as if she had something on it. "Thanks, kid."

"No problem," Lisa replied. She turned and saw an abandoned house not too far from where they stood. "I think we found Lilly."

They both headed inside. "Lilly! Scotty called out. They were in a hallway with doors on either side. "Lilly!" he called again. There was a loud thumping sound, and they both ran to the second door on their left. Scotty kicked it in, and they were shocked at the sight before them. Lilly was lying on her side, looking heavily disheveled. Scotty hurried to her, and knelt by her side, while Lisa watched the door. It was worse up close, she looked battered and her face was slightly bloody. Scotty looked around for something to cut her restraints that held her hands behind her back with- but couldn't find anything. "Looking for this?" Lisa asked, holding up a pocket knife.

"Could've told me sooner that you had that," Scotty said. Lisa tossed it to him; Scotty opened it and started to cut the ropes- fast enough to get them out quickly but slow enough not to cut her- it looked like the circulation had been cut from her wrists for awhile.

When he was finished with that, he brought Lilly to his chest, gently leaning her against his shoulder as he gently took the the tape off of her mouth. She moaned tiredly as she looked up at her rescuer. "Scotty..."

Scotty shushed her. "Don't try to talk, Lil. We're gonna get you out of here."

She groaned in pain a little as Scotty shifted her a bit so that he could pick her up and carry her. However, they didn't even get to the back door before their way was blocked, and a gun pointed at them. "How the heck did you get out?" Lisa asked switching feet, so that she was putting pressure on her bad leg; she had to put all of her weight on her arms now.

"Somebody dropped something," Cliff said holding up a key- the key to Scotty's hand cuffs.

Scotty almost slapped himself for being so careless; he was also wondering where Cliff got that gun, and if it was Lilly's...

"You wouldn't shoot a cop; let alone _two _cops and an innocent bystander." Lisa declared as she eased forward, hoping her face didn't show any of the pain she felt.

"Oh, yeah," he snarled. Lisa stopped when she was about two feet or so away from him. He pointed the gun at, what he thought was, her good leg. "Maybe I should just cripple you..."

Lisa snorted. "Go right ahead. See how far that gets ya."

The sounds of sirens came wailing toward them; Cliff accidentally pulled the trigger. Scotty flinched and Lilly hardly moved. Lisa was still standing on her bad leg, with a smirk on her face. "Didn't feel a thing."

They heard voices headed their direction; as Cliff turned, Lisa swung out, her bad leg hitting him hard in his weak spot; since it was in a cast, it hurt about ten times worse. She almost lost her balance, but was able to regain it when she was back on her feet. Cliff doubled over at the pain, and that was when the rest of the team showed up.

Jeffries and Vera took Cliff for a little ride, while Scotty carried Lilly back to the ambulance.

S

Lilly awoke to the steady beeps of the monitor. The lights were a little bright at first, but as her eyes adjusted, it became normal again. She looked around, and saw Scotty sitting at her bedside. He was a sleep, but she must've twitched slightly, because Scotty woke up, and it took a second for her to realize that he was holding her hand. "Hey," he said.

"Hey," she whispered quietly. "How long have I been out?"

"Eighteen hours," Scotty replied. "But we've got him, this time, Lil. He's going to jail for quite awhile." He was quiet for a moment, as Lilly looked away for a moment. Scotty figured that he should change the subject. "How do you feel?"

Lilly gave him a sour look. "Do you have to ask?"

Scotty shrugged, which Lilly chuckled at.

"Horrible; my limbs are sore, and I can't even tell you how hard it is to move." Lilly sighed. "Where's Lisa?"

Scotty had a mischievous look on his face. "She's in the next room, supposedly resting. She injured her leg more when she kicked at Cliff, now she's on bed rest, and will be lucky if she doesn't have a limp when she's out of the cast. Apparently, she tried to pull off a stunt by making him think that her bad leg was her good leg. Worked too, but she had to get a new cast."

"So, why are you smirking?"

"She's in a sling now."

"For a girl in a sling," somebody called, walking in. Lilly turned to see Lisa swinging in on her crutches. "I can still make an entrance."

"What are you doin' out of bed?"

Lisa shrugged. "Nurses are out; I heard you talking, figured I could sneak in before they returned. Gotta see how my guardian is doing, ya know."

Lilly shook her head. "Get over here." Lisa laughed as she headed toward Lilly to give her a hug.

"Don't I get one?" Scotty asked. Lisa sighed mock-exasperatedly, and gave him one. "Gotta go," she said. "One of the nurses just came back in and I gotta get back in before they start yellin' at me."

They both laughed as she hurried out. "What are you doing out of bed young lady," somebody said- and it certainly wasn't the nurses.

"No reason," Lisa said. "I need to get back there, though, before I _am _in trouble."

Nick, Wil, and John came in a moment later. "Hey, Lil," Wil said. "How're you doing?"

"Bit better now that you guys are here," she said. "Was that Kat I heard?"

"Yeah, she knows about Lisa's stunt just now, and she's not happy." He laughed.

"Well, you gotta admit, when she sped on half-way through town, Kat nearly killed her."

"Wait..." Lilly said. "_Lisa _sped? And she didn't get ticketed?"

"She didn't get caught."

"And who was riding with her?"

They all pointed at Scotty. "Thanks for throwing me under the bus, guys," he grumbled.

Lilly glared at him. "You let her drive?"

"Uh... yeah. She asked, and I let her; it was kind of an emergency and I wanted to get out of the car fast to catch Cliff."

Lilly looked like she didn't believe him, but let it go for now. Kat came in a minute later. "Well, trouble maker is her in bed, and back in her sling, where she belongs," she said, walking over to Lilly to give her a hug. "Now, what were you guys talking about just now?"

"Nothing," everyone but Lilly said.

"I don't even want to know."

S

A few days later, Scotty dropped the girls off at their apartment. "Thanks, Scotty," Lilly said as she opened the door to get out of the car.

"Anytime Lil," Scotty replied.

Lilly went around the back and grabbed the wheelchair that Lisa was supposed to ride in for the next few days. Scotty got out also, and beat her to the trunk. "I got it," he said.

Lilly looked like she was about to object, but she didn't say anything as Scotty popped the trunk. He took out the wheelchair, and unfolded it for her. Lisa opened her door, and waited for the chair to be brought to her, and then she got into it.

"Thanks, Scotty," Lisa said.

"You're welcome," Scotty said, as he pushed the wheelchair inside.

"I can take it from here," Lisa said as she started to roll herself inside, leaving Lilly and Scotty alone out front. Lilly shot Lisa an irritated look, which Lisa just giggled at.

"Are you going to be okay?" Scotty asked after a tense moment of silence.

Lilly nodded. "Fine. Thanks, Scotty."

"You're welcome, Lil." Out of some impulse he had, he pushed some of her hair back. She neither pulled away, nor gave him an icy look. She just gave him a small smile.

Before she could say anything, though, there was a loud crash, and a meow from one of the cats. "Crud," Lisa muttered from inside. "Lilly!"

"What did you do?"

"I think I broke one of the picture frames," Lisa replied. "Might want to come inside and take a look."

Lilly shook her head. "I'll see you tomorrow, Scotty," she said heading inside.

"Okay," Scotty said. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Scotty," Lilly said as she went inside, closing the door. Scotty headed back to his car. Once inside, he drove around the block a couple of times, and stopped in front of her house again, to see that the lights were out. He picked his phone and sent her a text message.


	5. Chapter 5

Lilly awoke the next morning, and headed downstairs to check on Lisa, who had decided to sleep on the couch for the night; she didn't see a point in going up the staircase when she wasn't supposed to put her weight on the her leg. Lisa was already up and had made breakfast: Biscuits and Gravy.

"What?" she asked when she saw Lilly looking at her.

"You cook?"

Lisa shrugged. "Took a culinary class freshman year. Plus, southern cooking is way better than what you guys cook up here, no offense."

"None taken, if I can get a taste of it."

Lisa laughed. "By the way, you got a text from Scotty."

"You've been looking at my phone?"

"Just to see who it's from. You were upstairs and asleep. I didn't read it or anything."

Lilly looked at her warily, but then dropped it when she read the text.

**Meet me by the hotdog vendor before you head inside.**

Lilly bit her lip, which was probably not the best thing to do with an over-curious teenager in the house. "I know that look," Lisa said. "What does it say?"

Lilly decided to start eating before answering her question. Lisa did have a point though, Southern cooking was good.

S

After Lilly dropped Lisa off at the office, she headed toward the hotdog vendor. Scotty was there waiting for her. "Hey, Lil."

"Hey, Scotty," Lilly replied with a smile. "What did you want to see me for? It's cold out here."

"I just wanted to talk to you about what happened yesterday," Scotty said, not really looking at her.

Lilly looked at him curiously. "What about?"

"Well, we've been friends for a long time... and..." he stopped, wondering why on earth it was so hard for him to tell her his true feelings about her. It was so easy back when he was dating her sister, after Elisa had died, and then there was Franky... it had been so easy to tell them, and he didn't have any second thoughts- until something happened: Elisa committed suicide; Christina had run off, becoming a fugitive; Franky was married... It had taken him eight years to realize that he was just avoiding the one person who had been on his mind since the day they had met- he had been expecting a guy, but instead got an attractive blonde woman, with ice-blue eyes; a woman who had been neglected as a child, and who needed someone to help her through her trying times- despite the fact that she was too independent and stubborn.

"What is it, Scotty?"

"I don't know, " Scotty said. "It's just that, after you were kidnapped, I swore to myself that I would do everything in my power to find you. I don't know what I would've done if anything worse had happened to you." He indicated the brace on Lilly's right wrist; it was just a sprain, but it had been a close call. "When I saw you, I felt like my heart was torn to pieces..."

There was a small silence between the two. "Scotty, are you saying you like me?"

Another small silence. "Yeah, I am."

"Scotty," Lilly began. "I-"

"Hey! Are you two comin' or what?" Lisa called from the doorway to the office. "It's freezing out here."

"We're coming, Lisa," Lilly said.

She and Scotty turned toward the office. "Let's just keep this between us," Scotty said, taking her hand. Lilly nodded in agreement.


	6. Chapter 6

Before I get the question again, yes Lilly and Scotty are finally together.


End file.
